STURTEVANT S NOTES ON EDIBLE PLANTS 23 



Aconitum lycoctontun Linn. Ranunculaceae. wolfsbane. 



Middle and northern Europe. The root is collected in Lapland and boiled for food. 

 This species, says Masters in the Treasury of Botany, does not possess such virulent proper- 

 ties as others. 



A. napelliis Linn, aconite, bear's-foot. friar's-cap. helmet-flower, luckie's 



MUTCH. MONKSHOOD. SOLDIER's-CAP. TURK's-CAP. 



Northern temperate regions. Cultivated in gardens for its flowers. A narcotic 

 poison, aconite, is the product of this species and the plant is given by the Shakers of 

 America as a medicinal herb. In Kunawar, however, the tubers are eaten as a tonic' 



Acorus calamus Linn. Aroideae. myrtle flag, sweet flag. 



Northern temperate regions. The rhizomes are used by confectioners as a candy, 

 by perfiuners in the preparation of aromatic vinegar, by rectifiers to improve tjie flavor 

 of gin and to give a peculiar taste to certain varieties of beer. In Europe and America, 

 the rhizomes are sometimes cut into slices and candied or otherwise made into a sweetmeat. 

 These rhizomes are to be seen for sale on the street comers of Boston and are frequently 

 chewed to sweeten the breath. In France it is in cultivation as an ornamental water plant. 



A. gramineus Soland. grass-leaved sweet flag. 



Japan. The root of this species is said to possess a stronger and more pleasant taste 

 and smell than that of A. calamus. It is sometimes cultivated in gardens. 



Acrocomia lasiospatha Mart. Palmae. macaw, mucuja palm. 



West Indies and Brazil. Its fruit is the size of an apricot, globidar and of a greenish- 

 olive color, with a thin layer of firm, edible pulp of an orange color covering the nut, 

 and, though oily and bitter, is much esteemed and eagerly sought after by the natives.2 

 This is probably the macaw tree of Wafer. 



A. mexicana Karw. coquito habraso. coyoli palm. 



Mexico. The fruit, in Mexico, is eaten by the inhabitants but is not much esteemed. 



A- sclerocarpa Mart, mucuja palm. 



Tropics of America. The young leaves of this palm are eaten as a vegetable. It is 

 cultivated in British hot-houses.' The fruit is the size of a crab and contains a sweet, 

 edible kernel. The husks are full of oil. 



Acronychia laurifolia Blume. Rutaceae. jambol. 



Tropics of Asia. The black, juicy, sweetish-acid fruit is an esculent.* In Cochin 

 China the young leaves are put in salads. They have the smell of cimiin and are not 

 unpleasant.^ In Ceylon the berries are called jambol. 



' Fluckiger and Hanbury Pharm. 15. 1879. 



' Seemann, B. Pop. Hist. Palms 48. 1856. 



Masters, M. T. Treas. Bot. 1:14. 1870. 



* Don, G. Hist. Dichl. Pis. 1:781. 1831. {Cyminosma pedunculata) 



Ibid. 



